Kalu aims to return to the House of Representatives, possibly abandoning his gubernatorial bid.

New information released on Tuesday suggests that Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, may have abandoned a potential governorship campaign and is instead preparing to run for re‑election to the House.

Sources speaking to The PUNCH indicated that Kalu appears to be focusing on retaining his seat for Bende Federal Constituency.

One indication is that the Deputy Speaker reportedly appeared before the APC screening committee in Abuja on Sunday, signalling his intent to remain in the Green Chamber.

The revelation follows weeks after a coalition of political actors purchased All Progressives Congress governorship expression of interest and nomination forms on Kalu’s behalf, urging him to contest the Abia governorship.

When the forms were presented to Kalu in Abuja earlier this month, the group’s spokesman, James Uko‑Kalu (SAN), described the Deputy Speaker as a bridge‑builder whose performance in the National Assembly had marked him as a capable leader.

Kalu responded at the time that he would undertake broad consultations before reaching a final decision on the governorship race.

“The purchase of this form is clearly a call for me to step forward. I have received it with gratitude, and within the next one or two days, after due consultations, I will make my position known,” he said.

Commenting on the latest development, a close associate of the Deputy Speaker, who asked to remain anonymous, confirmed that Kalu has opted to seek a return to the National Assembly.

“It is true that he is coming back to the House, subject to scaling the primaries and winning the election. He indeed spoke about becoming a governor, but you know, one plus one may not always be two in politics.

He has consulted widely, and there is a chance the people want him to continue the good works he is doing in parliament,” the source added.

Kalu had been widely speculated to be a major challenger to Governor Alex Otti’s re‑election.